BILLIE JEAN KING CUP

November 9, 2023

Tathiana Garbin

Lucia Bronzetti

Elisabetta Cocciaretto

Team Italy

Press Conference

BRONZETTI-COCCIARETTO/Friedsam-Siegemund

6-4, 6-7, 11-9

Team Italy - 3

Team Germany - 0

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. I guess this is for Tathiana, really. At least part of the job is done, getting out of the group. I think you're the first team or first nation to qualify for the semifinals. What's been the key so far this week to what has been a successful week so far?

CAPTAIN TATHIANA GARBIN: It's nothing coming like a present, as I say the other day. It's like step by step. Every year we work with this team, and I think it's something come from years ago.

I start to be a Billie Jean King Cup captain on 2016, I think, was years ago, and we start with them, but they are very young. Very, very young.

The team before had to finish her career, so they start a new team. They start a new team, and they start really from far behind, because they were so young at the beginning. Then they grew up slowly but constantly.

That's why I'm very happy. I was talking with Cocchi the other day, and we were talking about this. This generation, it's like Amazon generation, the one we have. Everything has to come first, soon, and grab everything now. You cannot wait.

What we have done with this team, it's growing up slowly. Every day, every single day. I'm so proud of these girls, because they have all their own team, and they work hard every single day. That's why I'm happy. I'm happy for them, because these kind of girls, there has to be role model for me.

Q. Congratulations for the group match and the big win. Which team would you prefer to play in semifinal: Slovenia, Kazakhstan? I know Lucia, Elisabetta, and Jasmine know very well the Slovenian players. So you have some information.

CAPTAIN TATHIANA GARBIN: Yeah, we know all the teams, because we start this since so long for this competition. But what I think for my group, my team, it's not to the opponent that we have no control what they have done, they will do it, but we know what we can do. So we have to work on this a lot.

I think we have to focus on our game and tomorrow rest and take it easy for be prepared for the next day. We reach the semifinal. It was a big goal for us. It is a big goal. I think we will be ready for this tie.

Q. Elisabetta, you seemed quite upset yesterday not to get the win in the doubles. How pleasing was it to win today? How would you assess your performance?

ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO: Yeah, yesterday I wasn't upset not just for the loss, but of course the way I played in the key moment.

So today I tried to play more, to reach the goal to play more aggressive, to be more with personality on the court. I'm really happy about this.

I mean, for us the win was not the most important today, but for me and also for Lucia and for Tathiana, I think, for us everybody was really important for ourself because it keep more improving ourself.

I'm really, really happy about that and how I manage the loss of yesterday to today, and also, we won against a great, great opponent. I mean, she just won the Finals. The other player is really, really good. It was unexpected, but I think we played unbelievable. So we are really happy.

Q. This is for both of you, really. Did it help maybe in the tiebreak in terms of being relaxed, knowing that you were already in the semifinals? Did that help at all in that tiebreak, or did you still feel the anxiety and the tension of the closeness of the tiebreak?

LUCIA BRONZETTI: By my side, I didn't think about the result. I just wanted to won that double. Yeah, the tension was there, but I tried to give my best and with personality, as Elisabetta said, to win the match. So yeah.

ELISABETTA COCCIARETTO: By my side, the same. I didn't think about the group and everything, but I just wanted to win, because for me was really important today and for the next days and for the future by my side.

I always when I go on court I want to win, and today was the same. Even more from yesterday and also for, I mean, we are really, really happy about the group, the singles, but of course we also doubles and we are not doubles players. So for us was really, really good, great.

Q. Tathiana, Martina was in here and she said after the long day yesterday, she was a little bit tired physically this morning, but she said that when her legs are not working so much, her heart starts working even more. Did you have any doubt at all about whether she'd be able to play today sort of physically, or did you always trust that she would bring that heart to the court today?

CAPTAIN TATHIANA GARBIN: No, it's what I say on the changeover. Sometimes you don't feel the ball, you don't play your great tennis, but you have three other things that is working: Head, heart, and legs. These three things can help you a lot to increase your tennis, but especially in your head.

So I was pushing her. I know her, as I know these girls also. Same position of this, I would suggest the same things, no? Because it happen. You have a chance to get to the semifinals. Of course your tennis, it's tight. Your physical attention, it's tight. So you have to work in the other things so you can control.

Q. I just wanted to pick up on what you said at the start about how this is a step-by-step process and a sort of long journey. How do you balance that now? Now that you have reached the semifinals, you've got through the group, are you satisfied already or will you only be satisfied now if you lift the title on Sunday?

CAPTAIN TATHIANA GARBIN: Well, for me, we are never satisfied (smiling). As mentality, I like to be happy for what we have done. We have to be happy but never satisfied. We have to always think that you can reach more and do more to improve your mentality.

But you have to be happy for what you've done. For me, every time you win, you have to celebrate. It's good to celebrate, because otherwise something normal you have done. This, for us, is not normal to reach a semifinal after very long time.

With this team we never reach the semifinal. I think four years ago, three years ago, we were in the World Group -- just three years ago we were in the World Group fighting like hell to get through what I think what they deserve.

So I'm more than happy but never satisfied (smiling).